Saturday, September 18, 2010

This seafood stew is a San Francisco specialty. I've only been near the Bay Area once, and while I had some amazingfood, I didn't have any cioppino, but it's one of my mom's favorite dishes. If you can't get it out, this recipe makes a decent substitute. While the recipe calls for using a slow cooker to make the broth, it's better if you cook the broth on very low heat for several hours on the stove, and I actually think the broth should be prepared the day before you plan to serve the stew. The shellfish cooks up quickly, so all you'd need to do on the day you serve is spend 15-20 minutes preparing and cooking the fish and making garlic bread.

Saute the oil and butter in a large pan over medium-high heat. When hot, saute shallots, fennel and onion until softened. Transfer the vegetable mixture to a large pot or dutch oven and add tomatoes, tomato paste, clam juice, white wine, chicken broth, lime juice and herbs. Cover and cook on low heat for several hours. You can do this part a day (or more) in advance, and refrigerate (or freeze) the broth.

Heat the broth until it simmers. To blanch the lobster tails, bring to boil enough water to cover the tails. Add lobster and cook about 2-3 minutes. Remove and pry the meat from the shell. You may need to cut through the back of the shell. Cut the meat into thirds.

Once the broth is simmering, add mussels; cook for 4 minutes, covered. Add remaining seafood and shellfish, cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and spoon the broth into bowls, evenly dividing the fish. *Discard any mussels that have not opened.* Garnish with parsley and serve with garlic bread. Serves 5-6.

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